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The Street Gangs in Central America Research Initiative (SCARIN)
LACC, in partnership with several institutions, has been awarded several research grants to study street gangs in the northern countries of Central America. These research projects are based on surveys and in-depth interviews with people with a history of gang membership in El Salvador, Honduras, and Guatemala. Research projects under this initiative focus on the reasons why Central American youth decide to join a gang and the conditions that lead many to disengage after spending more than five years in the gang. The Street Gangs in Central America Research Initiative has been funded by different organizations, including the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL), USAID, and others. Find the reports and papers in the following links:
Gang Desistance Project in El Salvador
This research project, conducted between 2016 and 2018 aimed to understand the reasons and processes gang members in El Salvador leave the gangs. It is based on a survey with nearly 1,200 respondents with a history of gang membership, and it was funded by the State Department’s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL).
El reporte de El Salvador (Spanish)
El resumen de El Salvador (Spanish)
Gang Desistance Project in Honduras
The Honduran Gang Desistance Project was conducted between 2018 and 2020, in coordination with the American Institutes of Research and funded by the USAID’s Latin America and Caribbean Youth Violence Prevention Project
Gang Desistance Project in Guatemala
The Guatemalan Gang Desistance Project was conducted between 2019 and 2021, in coordination with the American Institutes of Research and funded by the USAID’s Latin America and Caribbean Youth Violence Prevention Project
Understanding Intervention Programs and Gang Governance in Central America
This study, conducted in 2021, aimed to understand violence intervention programs and gang governance in northern Central America. It is based on 19 focus groups with residents, local subject matter experts, and prevention program workers in communities affected by youth violence in Honduras, Guatemala, and El Salvador. The project was supported by the USAID-funded Latin America and Caribbean Youth Violence Prevention (LAC-YVP) project managed by American Institutes for Research (AIR).
Understanding Intervention Programs
Summary: Understanding Intervention Programs
Resumen: Programas de Intervención y Gobernanza de Pandillas a Nivel Local
Working papers
The following are working papers on Central American gangs that have been commissioned or produced to strengthen the discussion about gangs in the region.
Gangs, Violence, and Extortion in Northern Central America by Pamela Ruiz
Articles in peer-reviewed journals
These papers have been produced as part of the projects associated with the Street Gangs in Central America Research Initiative (SCARIN)
Leaving the Pervasive Barrio: Gang Disengagement under Criminal Governance
Mara forever? Factors associated with gang disengagement in El Salvador
Rethinking the mechanisms of gang desistance in a developing country
